Three new associates joined the Health Law Group in September, all of whom articled with BLG prior to joining the group. We sat down with each of the associates to discuss their new roles and what the future may bring. We know they will be invaluable assets for our clients and hope you will get to know each of them in time.
Emily Mau
Emily will be practicing as a disputes lawyer in both the Health Law and Insurance & Tort Liability practice groups. She is a graduate of the University of Ottawa’s law school, which built upon her Honours Bachelor of Sciences in Biology and Masters in Environment and Sustainability, both from the University of Western Ontario.
As a student, Emily worked at ARCH Disability Law Centre, a specialty legal aid clinic, where she focused on issues such as human rights, subsidized housing, social assistance and access to justice. She also seconded to St. Michael’s Hospital to assist with the Health Justice program.
We talked to Emily about what she is most looking forward to about working at BLG and how she is spending her free time:
What are you most looking forward to as a health law associate? Getting to see how cases play out long-term. As a student, you only get to see short snapshots of the lifetime of a case and I’m excited to see a larger portion of that lifespan.
What was the highlight of your summer? Setting up a series of bird feeders in our front yard. One day, spontaneously, I went out and bought five feeders. It took around a week for the neighbourhood birds to take notice, but now, a few months in, we see more than 10 species of birds in our front yard on an average day!
What is the best book you’ve read recently? Educated by Tara Westover. This book was an emotional rollercoaster – shocking and real – and in the end, you’re consoled by the fact that even though Ms. Westover lacked a formal education, she was still able to realize all sorts of accomplishments when she finally got a formal education.
Chloe Richardson
Chloe will be splitting her disputes practice between the Health and Labour & Employment Groups. Chloe is a Queen’s Law alum, having obtained that degree after completing a Bachelor of Commerce, Law and Business major at Ryerson University. During her schooling, Chloe volunteered with Queen's Legal Aid and Ryerson's Business Law Clinic. She also spent three months working with the in-house team at SickKids Hospital during her articling term. Prior to her career at BLG, Chloe worked at Bank of Montréal in their legal and compliance department.
We asked Chloe what most surprised her about being a lawyer and what good books she has read in the past few months:
What is the most surprising thing you learned about health law as a student? The variety of cases and scenarios that health law touches on. No two days are the same working in health law and I love that I am continually challenged.
What was the highlight of your summer? It’s a tie between my trip to Japan and travelling Central America with my mum.
What is the best book you’ve read recently? Educated by Tara Westover. It’s a true story and was fascinating. It demonstrated the power and privilege of education, which I strongly believe in. [Ed note: clearly a popular book amongst health lawyers!]
Ben Shakinovsky
Ben has joined the firm as a dual disputes associate in the Health and Corporate Commercial litigation groups. He received his law degree from the University of Toronto and has a Master's and Honours BA from that institution.
During his time in school, Ben acted as a caseworker and volunteer division leader in the Criminal Division of Downtown Legal Services, where he prepared and ran a full criminal trial. In his second year, he competed in the Frank W. Callaghan Memorial Moot, where his team won first place in both oral and written advocacy. While articling at the firm, Ben was seconded to the Canadian Civil Liberties Association.
We asked Ben about his articling experiences and how he kept busy during the summer:
What is the most surprising thing you learned about health law as a student? I was most surprised by the sheer breadth of practice within the group. From medical negligence cases to review board hearings to corporate governance matters, the variety is astounding!
What was the highlight of your summer? Reaching the summit of Angels Landing in Zion National Park, Utah.
What is your favourite recent read? Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell. An incredible portrait of poverty in both cities. I appreciated it all the more for having read it just before visiting both cities this past summer.